Young man from Colyford chosen to share his story with thousands of guests at Duke of Edinburgh’s Gold Award celebrations in Buckingham Palace Garden

A young man from Colyford in East Devon joined His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh and journalist and broadcaster Clive Myrie to give a speech to thousands of young people and their loved ones at Buckingham Palace yesterday – as they celebrated achieving their Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards.   

Dipesh Purandare, 19 – who was also celebrating achieving his own Gold Award – took to the Palace’s West Terrace to share his inspiring DofE story with around 2,000 other young Award holders. Dipesh, who did his DofE at Colyton Grammar School, was joined for the special day by his mum Carolyn and aunty Barbara.

Dipesh’s celebration was one of four very special festival-style events taking place in Buckingham Palace Garden over two days on Friday 10 and Monday 13 May, recognising more than 8,000 young people who have shown extraordinary perseverance, creativity and resilience to complete their Gold DofE in schools, community organisations, youth groups and workplaces, all over the UK.   

Dipesh spoke about how DofE helped him to overcome his shyness and gave him the confidence to try new things. He said: “In year nine, I didn’t want to talk to anyone outside of my friendship group. But DofE made me do it, multiple times, and each time talking to new people and making friends became easier and more enjoyable. 

“Before DofE I hated doing sports. But knowing I had to do the Physical section, I signed up for various activities including shotput, judo and even rugby. Was I good? No. Did I enjoy it? Actually… yeah! DofE made me realise that it doesn’t really matter if you’re good at something or not, you can enjoy sports for the social aspect. I made lots of new friends, and it led to new skills and hobbies that I never would have tried without DofE.”

Dipesh also reflected on some of his proudest moments, including completing the Ten Tors – walking 50 miles in 30 hours on Dartmoor – and taking part in his Gold Expedition. He added: “For me, the DofE was an Award that, through five years, three levels and one global pandemic, transformed me from a shy, purely academic child into someone who loves socialising, spending time outdoors and just being with other people. Someone who loves life outside of the classroom, as well as within it. To put a DofE spin on JFK’s famous words: ‘We choose to wander up hills in North Yorkshire, not because it is easy, but because it is hard’.”

Buckingham Palace Garden has been transformed into a festival-style celebration for the Gold Award events, with giant deckchairs, bunting, and garden games and activities. Attendees have the chance to hear from famous DofE Award holders and broadcasting legends, and pick up career advice from actors, presenters, authors and campaigners, at stages throughout the garden.   

Friday’s celebration was hosted by The Duke of Edinburgh – who received his own Gold Award from his father Prince Philip at nearby St James’s Palace in 1986. The Duke congratulated attendees in a speech from the Palace’s West Terrace, before meeting Award holders and hearing about the positive impact their DofE has had on them.  

Broadcaster, journalist and Bronze DofE Award holder Clive Myrie also delivered an inspiring speech, where he recalled his own DofE expedition: “I camped out in the hills of Calderdale, above Todmorden, in West Yorkshire, cooking sausages on a little camping stove, navigating by map and compass, and sleeping under the stars. In later life, when I’ve had to camp out under the same stars, but thousands of miles away from England, during my reporting of hurricanes, tsunamis and earthquakes for the BBC, memories of Yorkshire have flooded back to me. Buildings aren’t safe in natural disasters. The best place to sleep is on open ground, camping stove and sausages in hand.

“And thoughts of Todmorden revisited me in 2003, when I was the embedded correspondent with the Royal Marines of 40 Commando, during the allied advance on Iraq. Burnt out buildings, waste ground and stretches of desert were again my bed for many nights, as we travelled from the Kuwaiti border, heading north to secure the country’s second city of Basra. From Todmorden, to the Tigris River in Iraq, for me, the link is the Duke of Edinburgh Awards, and the desire for adventure the Award instilled.”

Rugby legend and Gold DofE Award holder Alun Wyn Jones, Strictly Come Dancing stars Kai Widdrington and Nadiya Bychkova, disabled adventurer Darren Edwards, presenter and influencer Lucy Edwards, para-athlete Milly Pickles and DJ and TV presenter Melvin Odoom were also on hand with inspirational talks on careers and life skills.  

A Gold DofE Award is a major achievement – young people spend at least 12 months improving a physical activity, honing new skills, planning and completing an expedition and residential, and volunteering for a cause they are passionate about.   

Ruth Marvel, CEO of The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, said: "The young people here today have achieved something exceptional, and it is wonderful to see them celebrating together, sharing their experiences and hearing their aspirations for the future. DofE is all about proving to yourself just what you are capable of, and the young people here today have showed the world that their potential is limitless. I can’t wait to see what they go on to do next.

“As a charity, we’re working hard to give as many young people as possible the chance to have a DofE experience and we're delighted to announce that last year 330,948 young people started a DofE Award - another record-breaking year. This growth in participation shows just how much appetite there is amongst young people for enrichment and development opportunities beyond formal education and, together with our partners, we are determined to keep extending our reach until every young person has access to these types of life-changing experiences."

The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award has been focusing on breaking down barriers to give as many young people as possible the chance to do their DofE – working with more schools in deprived areas, further education colleges, community organisations, prisons and young offender institutions, and centres supporting young people with special educational needs and disabilities.

The charity recently announced record-breaking annual statistics, with 545,910 young people actively taking part in 2023/24, 330,984 young people starting their Award – and participants contributing an astonishing 4.7 million hours of Volunteering, equivalent to over £24 million in paid working hours.  

As young people navigate the after-effects of the pandemic, access to opportunities for personal development beyond the classroom, like the DofE, are vital to help them have fun, discover new talents and passions, build their resilience and self-belief and give them skills employers value – like teamwork, problem-solving and leadership.